


Maybe One Day

by Noname_Kat



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/F, Slow Burn, Snow and David are Idiots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-13
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2019-10-09 07:16:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17402450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noname_Kat/pseuds/Noname_Kat
Summary: “Congratulations. You just reunited mother and son. Maybe one day they'll even invite you for dinner.”Regina’s heart sank as she watched her son leave with the Charming clan. There was no way she was going to let that disappointment show on her face in front of her old mentor though... The brunette glared at him as she raised her arm to send herself home magically. Only nothing happened except excruciating pain.“Careful, dearie. You did just absorb some very potent magic…”“What has it done to me?” Regina tried to feel for her magic, but again the pain just ripped through her body.“Well...it was meant to destroy magic in a sense... So, I’d imagine, that is exactly what it is doing.”





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all! So this is a random out of nowhere story from me… The idea got in my head one day, and I couldn’t ignore it. This takes place after Emma, and Snow arrive back from The Enchanted Forest. So it’s basically canon until the party in The Cricket Game, and then the divergent begins! I haven’t watched the early episodes in a long time...so I might have some stuff that happened wrong, but meh. ;) As for Cora and Hook… In my headcanon, they decided to go to Neverland together. They defeated Pan. Cora turned back into her Rose McGowan younger self, and they lived happily ever after raising lost boys together. ;)
> 
>  
> 
> Enjoy! Please let me know what you think!!

“Congratulations. You just reunited mother and son. Maybe one day they'll even invite you for dinner.”

Regina’s heart sank as she watched her son leave with the Charming clan. There was no way she was going to let that disappointment show on her face in front of her old mentor though... The brunette glared at him as she raised her arm to send herself home magically. Only nothing happened except excruciating pain.

“Careful, dearie. You did just absorb some very potent magic…”

“What has it done to me?” Regina tried to feel for her magic, but again the pain just ripped through her body.

“Well...it was meant to destroy magic in a sense... So, I’d imagine, that is exactly what it is doing.”

She couldn’t read Rumple’s face. He didn’t seem concerned or delighted with what was happening to her. That wasn’t good. Regina stormed out of the room and headed for her vault. Hopefully, she could find out something about what was happening to her there.

 

* * *

 

Another wave of pain ripped through her… It was getting worse with every moment. Rumple had been mostly right in his theory that her magic was being destroyed. The brunette’s research had discovered that her magic, and the magic she absorbed, were basically at war with one another. Both were trying to defeat the other… The problem with that was, her body wouldn’t survive the battle. She had stayed up all night researching and couldn’t find anything on how to stop what was happening to her. Why had she been so foolish? All to save her mortal enemies?! No... all to be a good mother to Henry...

She had found one solution... It was somewhat fitting she supposed. She had to leave Storybrooke. She had to venture out into the land without magic. If there was no magic, there was no battle for her body to endure. The idea of taking Henry away with her had crossed her mind, but all she could picture was how happy he seemed wrapped up in Emma’s arms...she couldn’t take that from him. He had made his choice. She had lost.

Regina returned to the mansion to prepare for her departure. As she was glancing around, deciding on what to take and what to leave, the sound of knocking on her front door surprised her. She hoped it wasn’t another mob... She didn’t have the time, or strength, to deal with that right now. Opening the door to the sight of Emma Swan, was only slightly better than that of a mob she mused.

“Miss Swan. How may I help you?” It was taking all the strength not to let any of the pain she was feeling show. She would not show weakness in front of the Savior.

“Hi. I uh, came by to invite you to the party the town is throwing for Mary… Snow’s return.”

“Snow’s return? What about the return of their precious Savior as well?” Regina eyed the blonde curiously.

“Yeah...I suppose it’s for me too, but it seemed more about her…” Emma gave Regina a sad smirk, and for once, Regina understood how the Savior felt. Snow always came first to everyone… “Henry wants you there.”

“He does?” Regina couldn’t help but smile at that, he was thinking of her?

“Yeah, he asked me to tell you to bring your lasagna. He says it’s amazing.” Regina almost broke out into tears at that, but somehow she managed to keep her composure.

“I’ll see what I can do… Granny’s I assume?” It would work perfectly...she could see Henry one last time before she left town...

“Yeah, Granny’s at six...” The blonde had a look of surprise on her face. She was probably expecting a bit of a fight to get Regina to go… A sudden bolt of pain shot through the brunette that she couldn't manage to hide... “Whoa! Are you okay?” Emma reached out and placed a steadying hand on Regina’s shoulder. Instantly the feeling of pain stopped. Regina shrugged off Emma’s hand, and the pain returned.

“I’m fine, Miss Swan. Just a minor headache, nothing to worry about. I’ll see you tonight.” Regina closed the door and fell back into it with a grunt. Had she just imagined the pain going away when Emma touched her? The surprise of the woman’s touch must have made her forget about it for a moment… The brunette shook her head. She had too much work to do before tonight. She couldn’t dwell on such a trivial thing.

 

* * *

 

“Sorry, I’m late.” Regina entered the diner with the sweetest smile she could manage. The room went instantly silent; she was surprised to see a smile on Emma’s face.

“What’s she doing here?!” Of course one of Snow’s little minions would speak up. She saw Leroy grab a knife...like that would help him against her...

“I invited her.” Regina couldn’t help but smirk as the stunned Charmings looked over at their precious daughter with wide eyes. “We're celebrating today, because of Regina. She helped us get home. No matter what she did in the past, we owe her our thanks now.”

Henry joined Regina at the counter, and she ran her hand through his hair. She dished him up some lasagna and could hear Snow whispering to Emma saying something about her trying to kill them. Again, Emma surprised Regina, and stuck up for her… “She's trying to change for Henry. He believes in her, and right now that's enough for me. I couldn't have changed if I wasn't given a chance, so... she gets one, too.”

“I’m glad you came.” Regina’s attention was drawn back to Henry with his kind words.

“Thank you for thinking of me, my little prince.” Her eyes filled with tears as she smiled down at him. She took his chin into her hand and placed a small kiss on his forehead. “I love you. You know that right?”

“Yeah… I do. I’m happy you’re trying so hard to be better.” He took a big bite of lasagna and smiled at her.

“Careful kid, the secret ingredient is probably poison.” Leroy glared at her from across the counter.

“Actually… It’s red pepper flakes. Gives it a kick.” She clenched her fist tight, fighting her instincts that wanted to rip the heart from his chest. A fresh wave of pain washed over her…

“Mom? Are you okay?” She looked down at her son’s concerned face and managed to calm her features.

“Yes, my prince. I think I may be coming down with something. I’ll just need to make sure to drink some extra orange juice in the morning.” She gave him a wink and booped his nose with her index finger. She thought her heart would burst from her chest when he giggled at her actions.

She stayed for a bit… It was obvious no one was interested in talking to her. Not that she wanted to talk to any of them either… With one last glance over to Henry, who was laughing at something Dr. Hopper had just said, she made her way out the front door.

“Archie made a cake. You don't want to stay for a piece?” Regina rolled her eyes. Of course, Emma followed her out…

"I’m fine. Thank you.” She managed a smile.

“Okay.”

“Thank you.”

“You just said that…”

“For...inviting me.”

“Henry wanted it. I'm glad you guys got to spend some time together.”

“Me too.” Regina looked down to the manila envelope she had tucked under her arm. “Actually… I have this for you, just some paperwork that needs to be signed… I was going to leave it on your desk, but since I’m here.” She handed the envelope to Emma.

“Seriously? Paperwork? I just got back?” Emma gave her an exasperated look. Regina almost laughed.

“It’s nothing pressing. You can leave it for tomorrow.” She looked Emma right in the eyes. She couldn’t believe she was leaving her son in this woman’s hands. She noticed the blonde start to squirm and realized she might have been staring a bit too long. “Goodbye, Miss Swan.”

She saw a look of confusion cross Emma’s face as she turned and walked away. Waves of pain were washing over her as she headed towards her car. It was time to leave this life behind.

 

* * *

 

Regina drove to Portland and left her car and cell phone at the bus station. She bought a ticket to New York with her credit card but didn’t board. Instead, she took a cab to the train station and paid cash for a ticket to Boston. Once there, she purchased a plane ticket from Boston to Seattle, also with cash. Regina knew Emma would look for her. She knew the Savior part of her wouldn’t let the Mayor just disappear without an explanation. She casually left her credit card in one of the airport restrooms. If she were lucky someone would use it in another state or country. She had transferred almost all her money into a new, hopefully untraceable, account.

“Can I get you anything else, Ms. Miller?”

“No thank you, dear. I’m fine.” First class really was a lovely way to travel. She sipped on her champagne and enjoyed the feeling of being pain-free. She would miss Henry, of course, but she was feeling a sense of pure freedom for the first time in her entire life. She could do this. She could start over.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

“Henry! Breakfast is ready!” Emma poured the cereal out into the two bowls in front of her.

“Cold cereal, again?” Henry jumped up into the bar stool and frowned.

“Sorry kid… I’m not much of a cook.” She cringed. She really needed to learn… She had a kid to take care of now. Oh god! She had a kid to take care of now!  
  
“Ma? Are you okay? You look a little pale…”  
  
“Yeah, just tired from the whole realm jumping thing. No biggie.” She tried to give him a reassuring smile. Luckily it seemed to work.

“So what are we going to do today?”

“You’re going to go to school.”

“But...you just got back?!”  
  
"That doesn’t change anything. Life goes on as normal, kid.” What was normal though? Sure she’d been watching out for Henry before the curse broke, but he was still under Regina’s watchful eye most of the time. She didn’t even know where to go to for advice. It’s not like David and Snow knew how to raise a kid. The one person she knew that did ironically enough was Regina. How awkward would that be? Hey, Regina, can you give me advice on how to raise your son? Ugh….she let her head fall onto the counter. She was screwed.  
  
“Ma?”  
  
“Go get dressed, kid. I don’t want you to be late.” Emma got up and tossed the bowls into the sink to take care of later. The envelope Regina had given her the night before caught her attention. She rolled her eyes. Only Regina would give her paperwork right when she got back from another realm.  
  
Snow and David came stumbling into the apartment giggling, and Emma felt a little ill watching the smitten true love couple.  
  
“Emma! How are you this morning, sweetheart?” Emma wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to David’s use of terms of endearments for her…  
  
“Fine. Just about to head out.” Emma tucked the envelope under her arm.  
  
“Oh, where are you off to?” Snow looked at her curiously, and Emma felt like she was in trouble for some reason.  
  
“Umm, Regina gave me some paperwork, so I was going to head into the station to work on…”  
  
“Oh, that won’t be necessary.” Snow waved her hand dismissively and interrupted the blonde.  
  
Emma scrunched her face in confusion. “And why’s that?”  
  
The smile Snow gave Emma made her blood run cold. “Well, she’s no longer mayor of course. No need to do anything she says anymore.”

Emma’s not sure why that news takes her by surprise, but it does. “Oh, I guess that makes sense... Well, I’ll just go over this still, to make sure it’s nothing important…”

“Actually, Emma. We were going to talk to you about that…” Snow glanced over to David who gave her nod.  
  
“About what?” Emma’s heart started to race. It was never good when people wanted to talk.  
  
“About you being sheriff. Your father and I feel like maybe you should find another line of work. You know, something more fitting for a princess.” That odd sickly sweet smile appeared on Snow’s face again. Emma was reminded that her friend Mary Margaret Blanchard no longer existed.  
  
“Are you serious right now?!”  
  
“Just hear us out Emma…”  
  
“What’s going on?” Henry interrupted before she could give her parents a verbal tongue lashing.  
  
“Nothing, kid. Let’s go.” She glared at her parents as she left the apartment.  
  
“Emma…”

 

* * *

 

Emma entered the station and slammed the envelope from Regina down on the desk. She was seething with rage. How could her parents just think they could control what she does with her life? Something more fitting of a princess?! Really?! She kicked over a trash can and slammed her hand down on her desk again… Wasn’t she supposed to be their damn Savior? Wasn’t that more in line with being the sheriff? This wasn’t The Enchanted Forest...they couldn’t just make themselves King and Queen of the land...could they? Ugh, her head hurt.  
  
Wanting a distraction from the stress of her parents, Emma grabbed the paperwork from Regina. Honestly, some boring reports sounded like a great distraction right now… She tore open the manila envelope and took the documents out. They all looked pretty official for being some city hall reports… She also found a small envelope addressed to Henry? Emma started reading over the papers... The words legal guardian jumped out at her. Bank accounts, with lots of zeros, in her name and Henry’s appeared… Emma’s heart was racing as she found a note addressed to her…

**_Miss Swan,_ **

**_By the time you read this, I will have left Storybrooke._ **

**_Within these papers, you will find two bank accounts. One is for Henry to use for college. If for some reason your bad influence rubs off on him, and he decides not to go to college, he may have the funds at twenty-one years of age. The second account is for you. I am trusting my son with you, Emma. This money is for raising him right. I know now this is what he wants, and I have to give him his best chance...even if that’s with you. Please don’t let the two idiots fill his mind with too much nonsense about life back in The Enchanted Forest. It wasn’t all rainbows and unicorns like they like to make it seem...as you know first hand now, dear._ **

**_Also included in this envelope is the paperwork that grants you full parental custody of Henry. I know you feel you already are in charge of his life, and now you can be legally. My signature is already present, all you need to do is sign and mail it in, (I already have the stamp attached, you are welcome.)_ **

**_The house is also now in your name. Please move in asap. I’m sure the two idiots must be driving you crazy by now... Henry should still have his key, if not, I’m sure you can put your previous skills as a criminal to work to get in. You will find some of Henry’s favorite meals in the freezer. I have also left recipes with thorough instructions on how to make them in the future._ **

**_Please give my letter to Henry when you feel the time is right. I trust your judgment in this case…_ ** ****  
****  
**_Take care of my little prince, Miss Swan. He is something special._ ** ****  
****  
**_~Regina_ ** ****  
**_  
_ ** ******_ps- DO NOT COME LOOKING FOR ME_**

****  
Emma stared at the note with her mouth hanging open. How could Regina just leave Henry… It didn’t seem like her at all. Did she really just give up that easily? More importantly, how could she just leave her?! Emma had no idea how to parent a ten-year-old on her own! Or how to deal with her own newfound parents...that were turning out to be the idiots Regina always said they were… The sheriff grabbed her phone and dialed the mayor's number. It went straight to voicemail.  
  
“Regina! This better be some weird joke! Call me!” Emma dropped the phone onto her desk. What was she going to tell the kid?

“Emma?” Cringing Emma looked at her office door to see her parents looking at her.

“Not now! I don’t have time for your weird fairytale ideals…”

“Emma. Don’t speak to us like that...” Emma looked at them. She took in their body language. They stood with such a superior poise and grace, and it made her shudder.

“Listen. I get that you guys are royalty and like being in charge, but that’s not how things work in this world.”

“We know that.” For a small moment, Emma thought maybe she was getting through to them… “That’s why we need to get back to The Enchanted Forest as soon as possible.”

“You can’t be serious?!”

“It’s our home, Emma. We aren’t meant to be here. A curse brought us here. We have a responsibility to get back.” The way they talked to her like she was still the infant they lost all those years ago, made her blood boil. They smiled as they said what they had to say. No raised voices or anger, just eerie smiles as they told her what they felt was best for her life. “We will return to our land and rule over our people as we are meant to, and you will be the princess you were meant to be.” Again they smiled brightly at her.

“You guys really are idiots.” The sheriff grabbed her jacket off the back of her chair and stormed out of the office.

Emma found herself next at the door of the mayoral mansion. She pounded her fist onto the door and called out Regina’s name, but no one came to the door. She rolled her eyes as she remembered Regina’s words in the note about breaking in, then she picked the lock.

Nothing seemed out of place at first, but as she looked closer she noticed some small things… Picture frames were missing from the walls. There were a few gaps on the bookshelves. In the kitchen, the blonde found a book of recipes on the counter. A small smile broke out on her face as she took in all the little tiny details Regina had written out in it… Emma would never doubt Regina’s love for Henry, but then why would she leave?


	3. Chapter 3

Emma took some deep calming breaths. The blonde was seated in a booth at Grannys waiting for Henry to get out of school. Today was the day she was going to tell the kid about Regina. She fiddled with the envelope addressed to him nervously. It’d been three weeks since Regina had left town. Surprisingly, no one seemed to have noticed Regina’s disappearance, or no one seemed to care anyway. At first, she was relieved that Henry hadn’t been asking questions about his mother, but the longer it went on, the more it bothered Emma that he didn’t seem to care about the woman who had raised him for the past ten years.

“Hey, Ma!” Henry plopped down across from her with a big smile on his face.

“Hey, Kid. How was school?”

“It was okay. Nick and Ava started a food fight at lunch. It was pretty epic!”

“Those little hoodlums better not try that in here, or I’ll get ‘em with my crossbow!” Granny held her crossbow high in the air and waved it around.

“Granny! You can’t keep threatening people here like that! This isn’t The Enchanted Forest!” Ruby gave Granny an exasperated look. Emma knew exactly how she felt. She’d been avoiding her parents as much as she possibly could the last few weeks. “Sorry about that, guys. What can I get ya?”

“I’ll have a burger and fries! Oh! And a chocolate shake!”

“Actually… He’ll have a burger and a side salad with a glass of water. I’ll have the same.”

“Aww, Ma!” Emma rolled her eyes. Henry had been getting away with so much since the curse broke. Sure, he had been poisoned, but it was time to get back to reality.

“You have got to start eating better, Henry.” The thought of all that food in Regina’s freezer crept into her mind.

“Whatever…”

“Excuse me?” Emma gave him the best “Regina” look she could manage. It seemed to do the trick as his eyes grew wide.

“Sorry…”

“That’s better.” They sat in silence for a moment before Emma decided to bring Regina up finally. “Henry, have you wondered about where your Mom has been the last few weeks?”

“Umm...not really? I figured she was under house arrest or something.” He shrugged at her, and Emma couldn’t help but be somewhat off-put by his casual attitude with the situation.

“You don’t think it’s odd that she hasn’t reached out to you?” She observed his face as he thought about his answers. She didn’t like what she saw…

“I figured you guys weren’t letting her.” Emma gave it some thought. The next few questions would be tricky considering Regina was gone.

“Do you want to see her?”

“I dunno… I mean, I know she’s been trying to be better…”

“But?” Emma's heart started to beat faster as she watched Henry bite his lip and consider his next words.

“Well, she’s still the evil queen...” Emma bit her tongue so he could finish his thought. Before he could though, Ruby showed up with their food.

“Alright, guys! Here ya go! Need anything else?

“No, we’re good thanks.” Emma smiled up at Ruby. So far the waitress had been one of the few Enchanted Forrest residents whos personality didn’t seem that much different from their cursed ones. It was refreshing.

“Hey, Emma? Before you go can we talk?” Ruby’s tone turned serious as she whispered her request to Emma.

“Yeah, no problem...” The blonde wondered what that was all about…

“Ma?” Her attention turned back to a very concerned looking Henry. “Is Mom okay?”

Finally, she saw some emotion from the kid. “I dunno, Henry...” Emma slid the envelope across the table. She had been tempted to open it, but decided against it.

Henry picked the envelope up and traced his name with his finger. “It's from Mom.” It wasn’t a question, just a statement of fact. He slowly peeled the envelope open. It was like he knew whatever was inside was terrible news. He pulled the letter out and started to read...

Emma watched as his eyes became glossy. Her heart ached as a single tear slipped down his cheek, maybe she should have read the letter…

“She’s gone.”

“I’m so sorry, Henry…”

“You knew?”

“She left me a note… Along with the paperwork that gives me complete custody of you.” She watched as more tears began to slide down his face. She felt anger grow inside of her, how could Regina do this to him? Before she could talk more about it with Henry, he bolted from the booth and ran out of the diner.

“Henry!” Emma jumped up to chase him and hit her knee hard on the table. Water and food flew everywhere, including all down her front. The blonde cursed under her breath and turned to run out after Henry.

“Don’t even think of leaving without paying, Sheriff!”  Emma looked over to see a very angry looking Granny reaching for her crossbow.

“Granny! Just go, Emma! I’ll handle Granny...” Ruby stepped between Granny and the blonde.

“Thanks, Rubes! We’ll talk later!” Emma raced out of the diner after Henry.

  

* * *

  

“Alright, Ms. Miller. Just one more signature, right here, and the restaurant is all yours.” Regina smiled at the real estate agent as she took the pen from her.

“I already told you to call me Roni.” She gave the blonde woman a little wink and signed the deed for her new place. It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was hers. The brunette couldn’t wait to get to work remodeling it.

“Okay, it’s all yours.” The young blonde agent smiled shyly at her and Regina loved the feeling it gave her. The former evil queen was still getting used to not seeing hatred in every set of eyes that looked at her. “You’ll get a packet in a few weeks with all the official documents, but it’s all yours! I hope I get an invite to the grand opening?”

“You’ll be first on my list, dear. Thank you so much for all the help in getting this done so fast.”

“Of course! I look forward to seeing what you do with the place. You have my number...if you need anything, at all, don’t hesitate to call.” Once again a shy smile appeared on the woman’s face. Regina knew the woman probably was hoping to set up something sooner rather than later, but she didn’t have time for that...yet. “I’ll keep that in mind. For now, I have a lot of work to do...” Regina looked around the beat up space. It’d been empty for a while, but she saw its potential.

Finally taking the hint, the real estate agent took her exit with one last thanks and smile.

It had been a month since Regina had left Storybrooke, and Henry, behind. Living out of a hotel room wasn’t her favorite. The fact that the restaurant had a living area above it was the final key that made Regina go for the space. She hoped to be to keep herself busy — the less time she had to think about what she left behind, the better. Walking over to the dusty bar Regina ran her hand along it… She wished she could summon up a bottle of her cider to celebrate with… The brunette chuckled at herself, that life was behind her now. The idea of running her own restaurant was thrilling. Cooking had become such an important part of her life the last few years. If she could run a town she could run a kitchen; she had no doubt.

A small rattling sound behind the bar caught her attention. “Hello?”  She slowly made her way around the bar. The noise stopped as soon as she stepped behind the bar. Thinking her imagination was getting the better of her, Regina turned to leave. Just as she was about to step away, something attacked her ankle. “What the…?” Regina looked down and was thankful to see it wasn’t a rat… “Well...what do we have here?” She laughed as she watched a small fluffy orange kitten attempt to bite at the side of her heel. It made some small hissing sounds as it tried to kick at her with its back legs. “Aren’t you a feisty little one...”

She reached down and grabbed it by the scruff of its neck. Holding the small kitten up at her eye level Regina took in its dirty fur and small stature. It wiggled in her fingers and continued its grumpy attitude with a few small hisses. She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Well, it seems you are on your own in this crazy world?” The kitten stopped wiggling and looked directly at Regina as she spoke. “I am as well...” Regina pursed her lips in thought. “I suppose we found each other for a reason, let’s go home. We have a lot of work to do.”

  



	4. Chapter 4

Emma ran up the walkway to 108 Mifflin. Seeing the front door was left open gave her a glimmer of hope as she ran into the house.

“Henry?!” She had already checked all of his usual runaway spots with no luck. She really needed to have a serious talk about his habit of running when he was upset. The irony of that wasn’t lost on her. Emma had a habit of running, and Regina just had runaway as well, not exactly the best show of role models for the kid.

After searching all over downstairs, the blonde headed upstairs. Henry wasn’t in his room, and she felt her panic rising with every second. Stepping across the hall, she slowly opened the master suite door to a sight that broke her heart. Henry was curled up, asleep in Regina’s bed hugging a pillow. His face was puffy from crying, and he was holding the letter from his mother in his hand. Emma couldn’t help herself as she walked towards the bed. She needed to know what Regina had to say for herself. Emma slowly pulled the letter from Henry’s hand not wanting to wake him… She stepped back and opened the letter and started to read.

 

**_My Little Prince,_ **

**_I want first to say; I love you more than anything in the entire world. When you came into my life, I felt a purpose for the first time. I also want to apologize for lying to you and making you feel as if you were crazy for knowing the world wasn’t how it was supposed to be… You are so brilliant to have figured everything out the way you did. I was scared, I reacted horribly, and I will forever live with my guilt for making you feel like you were in the wrong. I hope that someday in your heart you can forgive me._ **

**_Now I must say goodbye to you, Henry. I will continue to be a better person in the new life that I start. I promise you that. Please listen to Emma. I may not have always seen eye to eye with your other mother, but I know she will do the best she can to take care of you. Please be patient with her. She has a lot to learn. As for your grandparents… I need you to please tread carefully. They have many ideas about how life should be lived, and not all of them blend well with the world you have grown up in... Trust your instincts. You are a brilliant boy, and I know you will grow up to be an amazing young man._ **

**_Please know I would not be leaving you if I had a choice. Something happened after I stopped the magic at the well... The details do not matter. Just know, I needed to leave Stroybrooke, so I could continue to live. I hope you understand... I know you are happier with Emma, and I feel everyone will be better off with me gone._ **

**_I love you, Henry Daniel Mills. Never forget that._ **

**_Love,_**

**_~Mom_ **

 

“She took them all.” Henry’s voice made Emma jump.

“Took all of what, kid?” She turned around to the sight of him rubbing his puffy eyes.

“The pictures. Mom didn’t even leave me one…” His voice broke, and Emma walked over and sat on the bed with him. “I…” Emma rubbed his back as he searched for the words he wanted to say. “I never wanted her to leave… I just wanted to get to know my family...” A fresh tear slid down his cheek. “...but she was my family.” He hugged the pillow tighter. “What do you think happened with the well? She seemed fine after…” His face scrunched up in thought.

“I dunno, kid.” That part of the letter had caught Emma by surprise. She should have known there was some reason Regina left other than just simply running away from her problems. The brunette would never leave Henry without reason. Thinking back to the last day she had seen the mayor, Emma remembered how oddly the woman had been acting. “Henry, did you notice anything odd about your mom the night of the party?”

“She said she wasn’t feeling well…”

“Yeah. She told me she had a headache…” Emma thought back to the moment on Regina’s porch when she had cringed in pain. “I’m thinking it was more than a headache.”

“Emma?”

“Yeah, kid?”

“We need to find her…”

“I’m way ahead of you, Henry.” Emma had been searching for Regina since she had found out the older woman had left. Emma knew she had gone to Portland, but from there it got a bit tricky.

“You’ve been looking for her?” Henry’s face lit up like a Christmas tree.

“Yup. I haven’t had much luck though… I think she ended up in Boston at one point.”  Emma had hacked into Regina’s work computer and then her bank account. Regina had paid for a ticket to New York, but then her credit card had been used at the airport in Boston. Then things got weird, and the card was used in Chicago and finally Los Angeles. There had only been enough money for a few transactions in the account, so Emma had her doubts that Regina was in LA. The transfers to the accounts for Emma and Henry were present, but there was another significant transfer of money into a separate account Emma couldn’t get into...she had tried for days and finally had given up. Regina could be anywhere in the world at this point.

“Operation Phoenix. We will bring her home.” Henry sat up and got a very determined look on his face.

“I like it, kid. It’s got style. Oh, and when I was at your mom’s office, I noticed she had a picture of you two together on her desk. We’ll go get it later okay?” He smiled brightly at her and for the first time in a while she felt better about things. She’d do whatever she could to track Regina down. First, Emma needed more information on why she had to leave. That meant going to see someone she didn’t really want to, Gold.

 

* * *

 

The bell jingled overhead as Emma stepped inside of Mr. Gold’s shop. Or should she be calling him Rumplestiltskin? It was all so confusing...

“Miss Swan, to what do I owe the pleasure?” She felt repulsed as she looked at the smug look on his face.

“I need to know what happened to Regina at the well.” There was no reason not to get right to the point of the matter.

“Is the Queen still breathing?” The hairs on the back of Emma’s neck stood on end as she glared at Rumple.

"She's left town.”

“Ahh…that explains a few things.”

“Like what?”

“Just some things I’ve noticed around town, nothing to worry your pretty little head about, Sherriff. Now, as for what happened to Regina at the well…” Emma watched him closely as he thought about his words. “Now, if I remember correctly, you still owe me a favor, Savior. I could just demand what I want, but seeing as I’m trying to be a better person for Belle… I’ll just ask you to get what I need, and then you will get the information you seek. Do we have a deal?”

“I suppose I don’t have much of a choice.” Emma rolled her eyes as she contemplated what to do. “If I do this, we’re even? No more, IOU’s?”

“We will be all done in our deals indeed, Miss Swan.”

“Fine. What do you need me to do?”

“I need you to get something from Regina’s vault for me.” Emma had been expecting something much more sinister than that.

“That’s it? Breaking and entering? You couldn’t manage to do that yourself?”

“The Queen has set up certain spells around her vault that prevent me from entering. I could figure it out, but I don’t have the time or desire to do so...it’s much easier to have you do it for me.”

“What makes you think I can get in?” Emma didn’t want to be fried to a crisp trying to get into the mayor's family crypt.

“You share blood with her son, she will have left it open for him and you by default.”

Emma wasn’t so sure about that… “Okay, what do you need me to get?”

“A globe. Or rather, what looks like a globe. You’ll know it when you see it.”

“That’s it?”

“Yes, Miss Swan. Now please be on your way, the sooner we both have what we want, the better.”

After being dismissed by the Dark One, Emma made her way out to Regina’s vault. The blonde was surprised to find that the front door opened up for her easily. Maybe Regina had gotten rid of everything before she left? As she made her way further in, she saw that wasn’t the case at all. It looked like Regina had left the vault behind in a hurry… There were books scattered all over the place. It wasn’t like Regina not to put everything back in its proper place. Emma picked one up and tried to read the page it was opened to… It was in another language.

Emma had a feeling the state of the vault had something to do with Regina leaving. Maybe she had been trying to research whatever it was that was wrong with her… Emma sighed and looked around for the object she came here for, finally she spotted it on a high shelf. She stretched up and grabbed the globe and nearly had a heart attack when a large box in front of her started to hiss. She stumbled back and cursed under her breath. If she managed to find Regina she was going to have a long talk with her about what all the hell she had in this place.

 

* * *

 

Emma entered the loft with her arms full of take-out from Granny’s.

“Did you talk to Gold?!” Henry came running up and took the drink tray for her hand.

“Yeah, I did. Get the table set up and I’ll fill you in as we eat.”

“What could you possibly have to talk to Rumplestiltskin about, Emma?” Damnit, she was hoping no one else was home. She turned to see Snow looking at her curiously.

“Regina, and why she had to leave town.” There was no use to try and lie, and she didn’t want to anyways.

“Why do you care about that? We’re lucky we don’t have to deal with her now.” Emma shook her head at Snow’s casual tone and walked over to the table. Henry joined her, and she handed him his food. “Emma, answer me.”

“Snow, she’s Henry’s mom.” Snow was about to argue, but Emma held her hand up to stop her. “I may have given birth to him, but she’s raised him to be the amazing kid he is now. They both deserve to have each other. I’m done with the back and forth on this, the past is the past.”

“Well, it won’t matter soon. We’ll be going back to The Enchanted Forrest soon, and she’ll be...wherever it is she is…” Emma didn’t even bother to argue with Snow. The Savior did give her son and a reassuring smile though.

“Hey, kid. Let’s take this take out...out.” Emma gathered all the food back up and the pair headed for the door.

“Emma…”

“We’ll talk later, Snow.”

Henry and Emma ended up back at the mansion. It had just seemed like the place to go…

“Kid...would it be okay with you if we moved into here? I’m not adjusting very well to the whole, having parents, thing.”

“That’d be awesome! I can sleep in my own room!” Emma smiled at him. She should have done this sooner…

“Okay, I’ll go get our stuff tomorrow. So...about your mom.” Emma tried to keep her face neutral as she delivered the news about Regina’s predicament. “Gold didn’t have a lot of info, but from what he did tell me, it sounds like absorbing that magic at the well really did a number on her…”

“Is she okay?!”

“I’m not sure… From what Gold told me, he believes that her magic is being attacked by the other magic. So my guess is, she left Storybrooke to get away from magic altogether. No magic, no pain.” Emma had come up with that theory on her own. All Gold told her was some cryptic stuff about magic destroying magic. At least she was even with him now. Hopefully getting him that globe wouldn’t come back to haunt her…

“So she can never come back to Storybrooke…” Henry lowered his head.

“We’ll keep trying to find a way to help her, but first, we need to find her.” Emma just wasn’t sure how to do that yet...

  
  



	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! 
> 
> Just a couple of reminders... SQ is endgame! Remember this is a slow burn, like really slow... :D
> 
> Enjoy!

Rumple watched as Emma Swan exited his shop. He picked up the globe the Savior had delivered to him and took it into the back room. Sitting it on the counter, he reached out and pricked his finger on its sharp, pointed top. The white globe glowed an eerie red that soon clouded up and settled into one particular spot on the globe's surface. He studied it carefully and smiled crookedly.

“Seattle, Washington.”

 

* * *

 

“Emma you cannot move into that house!” Emma rolled her eyes at Snow’s angry words. “I forbid it!”

“I’m a grown woman Snow! You can’t dictate what I do!” Emma had been expecting some push back, but this was ridiculous. “Listen. Henry needs to be in his home. This place is too small for all of us anyways. Regina wanted him to move back there…” Emma cringed as the words left her mouth.

“Who cares what Regina wanted?! She probably left some sort of trap! You cannot trust her!” Snow stomped her foot.

“She sacrificed everything to help get us back, Snow.” Another huff from Snow made Emma roll her eyes again.

“We will be going back to the Enchanted Forest soon. I expect you to act more like the princess you are once we are back there.”

“I’ll never be the princess you want me to be, Snow. The sooner you realize that, the better.” Emma glared at the woman who gave birth to her, but before she could tell Snow off more, the ground started to shake. “What the hell?!” The rumbling stopped as suddenly as it started.

“That’s probably Regina now…”

“Oh, just shut up already!” Emma grabbed her last box and headed for the door. She stopped and turned back to Snow before she exited. “I want to have a relationship with you. I really do, but you’ve got to find a way to let the past go.” With a final frown from Snow, Emma went to find out what the earthquake was all about…

As Emma walked out to the bug, she noticed a large crack running down the middle of the road. Nothing else seemed to be damaged as she looked around the area.

“It has begun.” Emma jumped at the sudden appearance of Rumplestiltskin by her side.

“What has?” She eyed the Dark One suspiciously.

“The town has started to collapse.” He said the words so calmly it sent a shiver down her spine.

“Okay, I’ll bite. Why is the town collapsing?” He looked over at her with a smirk.

“Because the caster of the curse isn’t here anymore. Without Regina here, the town will slowly fall apart. Reverting itself into what it once was...just an empty forest.” He picked some lint off of his sleeve. As he did so, his jacket sleeve rode up revealing a cuff on his wrist.

“What’s that about.” Emma pointed at the cuff, and he pulled his sleeve down over it.

“Nothing for you to worry about, Savior.” Emma glared at him.

“What can we do to stop this collapse?” Once again Gold just smiled at her.

“Find Regina.” He turned and limped away from her… Emma wondered why he was still using his cane when he had magic. Nothing about this place made any sense…

Another small quake drew her attention back down to the crack in the road. There was green vegetation starting to grow out of it… She rushed over to the bug and threw her things into the passenger seat. She needed to check on Henry and get to work finding Regina.

Emma found Henry asleep in his room when she got back to the mansion. Not even an earthquake could wake the kid, the stress of the day had exhausted him. Henry looked so content sleeping in his own bed. Closing the door, Emma stepped out into the hall and looked over at the master bedroom door. Slowly Emma pushed the door open and stepped inside. Regina had left most of her belongings behind… It’s not like she could take everything with her in her quick getaway.

“Where did you go, Regina… Give me a clue.” Emma stepped into the walk-in closet and smiled at the crazy amount of blouses and pencil skirts.”You do know how to dress to impress. I’ll give you that…” Finding nothing of value, Emma stepped back out into the bedroom. The weight of the day finally also getting the best of her as she fought back a yawn. She looked at the giant bed...it looked so inviting. Shaking her head, she left the room and headed for the guest bedroom. It didn’t feel right to take over Regina’s private space. Face planting into the bed she let sleep take over. Tomorrow she’d do everything she could to find Regina.

 

* * *

 

“Ugh, stop it.” Regina batted away the small paw that kept tapping at her nose. Soon an entire fluffy kitten body landed square on her face. “Oh, I see how it is…” She rolled over, taking the small kitten with her and started tickling its belly. “Take that!” She laughed as she watched the squirmy little kitten try to wiggle away from her tickle attacks. “Not so tough now are you?” The kitten scrambled away from the brunette as soon as she let it go. Regina laughed as the kitten huffed and started to groom itself.

Rolling out of bed Regina stretched and admired the work she’d done around her new living space. She had moved in about a week ago and was loving getting all the final little touches done. Walking into the kitchen, she started up her coffee pot and smiled down at the small kitten that had followed her. “Ready for some breakfast, dear?” The small kitten mewed up at her. “I really need to decide on a name for you…” Suddenly the kitten sat up straight and bolted to the opposite side of the kitchen. Regina watched as the tiny kitten attacked a red dishcloth that had slid off the oven door. The once evil queen couldn’t contain her laughter as she watched the small orange cat get wrapped up in the offending item. It bit and hissed at it angrily.

“Look at you, my savior. Protecting me from that evil rag of doom.” She reached down and picked up the kitten and once again laughed at how it was tangled up in the offending red dishcloth. “Hmm…stubborn, brave, and a little bit stupid… Looks decent in red...” Regina thought back to the previous day when the kitten had eaten the branch off of one of the new plants she just bought. “Well, Miss Swan...I believe we have found you a proper name.” She knew she should distance herself from anything having to do with her past, but the name was just too perfect.

The sounds of construction could be heard coming from downstairs. Regina looked over at the clock and smiled, eight o’clock on the dot.  So far so good with the crew she had hired. The lead contractor had given her a bit of an odd vibe when she first met him, but he came with glowing reviews. So she went ahead and hired him and his crew. If all went according to plan, she should be opening up her restaurant in a months time. The menu was coming together nicely. The brunette had decided to go with a family style concept. Home cooked meals were what she knew best, and the thought of families coming in and spending time together was something she loved. She also had decided that the bar area of the restaurant would have it’s own pub offerings. That would hopefully bring a younger non-family oriented group in as well…

The sound of her phone buzzing pulled her from her thoughts. She smiled down at the message from her former realtor.

  **I'm just checking in and seeing how the restaurant is coming along?**

 Regina bit her lip as she decided what to do. It was apparent the woman wanted some sort of relationship with her… She decided just to go ahead and respond to see what would happen.

  **Well hello, dear. It’s coming along fabulously. Thank you, once again, for all your help finding me this space.**

 She laughed at herself as her heartbeat increased as she waited to see what the woman would say next.

  **Of course! It is my job after all... ;) I was wondering if maybe you’d like to get a drink sometime soon? I know you are still busy getting everything ready, but if maybe you needed a break…**

 There it was. Regina respected that the woman was going after what she wanted...but she just wasn’t sure if this was something she was ready for? The woman was definitely attractive there was no denying that...

  **If you’re not in a good spot yet… I understand! I just would really like to get to know you better. :)**

 Regina laughed out loud at the woman’s silliness. One drink wouldn’t hurt she mused.

  **You know what. A drink does sound like a nice distraction from all of this construction madness. Would this Saturday work for you?**

 The response came in record time.

  **Yes!!!! I mean… Yes, that’d be lovely. Can I pick you up at 7? I know a great place.**

 Regina couldn’t believe she was doing this…

  **Perfect. See you then, dear.**

 All that she got in response was a thumbs up emoji. Regina rolled her eyes and began to wonder just how old this woman was…

 

* * *

 

“Well, it’s more than I had to go on before. Thanks for helping me out, Charlie. Yes, I promise not to be a stranger. Talk to ya soon.” Emma hung up the phone with a feeling of hope for the first time in months.

“Did you find her, Ma?” Henry had been listening in to her conversation with one of her old buddies from Boston. Charlie was always one of her best sources to help track down one of her bail jumpers.

“Not yet, kid. I’ve narrowed down our search immensely though. Go set the table, and we’ll talk about it.” She smiled as he rushed off to set the table. They were having one of Regina’s lasagnas tonight, and they were both pretty excited about it.

They settled down at the dining room table, but Henry couldn’t sit still. “Ma! What did you find out?”

Emma smiled over at her son. She was loving the fact that Henry was so behind finding Regina. “Okay. So I called my guy…” Emma knew she’d need to leave out details on just how illegal her methods were. “He managed to get some info for me.” She took a big bite of lasagna and moaned at its amazingness. “Damn this is amazing!”

“Ma…”

“Oh yeah, sorry. We managed to narrow down the cities we think she may have traveled to… My buddy got his hands on some footage from the airport.” Henry was about to ask a question and Emma stopped him. “And, no. I won’t tell you any of the details on how he got his hands on the video, so don’t ask.” She gave him a look and he just nodded. “So from where we spotted her on the video, there are five possible cities she could have flown to… Chicago, Dallas, LA, Cleveland, or Seattle. Now she could have boarded a connecting flight out of any of those cities, so it’s not guaranteed that she’s in any of those cities, but it’s a start.” She gave him a big smile and he returned it. She laughed at the sauce he had all over his face. “Now just from the little bit, I know about your Mom... I’m gonna rule Clevland out, and Dallas as well… That’s all just my gut feeling I’m going with…” He nodded in agreement. “I’ll get to work on narrowing the other options down tomorrow.”

“I have a good feeling about this, Ma. We’re gonna find her!” They shared a smile and went to work finishing up dinner.

Another rumble startled them. Emma’s cell phone started to ring. She rolled her eyes when she saw Snow’s name on the caller id. “Yeah?”

“Emma! We’re having an emergency town meeting in the morning!” Emma should have probably told them what Gold told her… “Is it about the earthquakes? Cause I think I may know…”

“No, not that! We’ve found a way home! We found a way back to the Enchanted Forest!” Emma dropped the phone and took a deep calming breath. Great, just great...

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think! 
> 
> I'm on twitter if you want to talk, noname_kat


	6. Chapter 6

Emma walked into town hall. She was surprised to find it wasn’t nearly as crowded as she was anticipating.

“Emma, thank god you’re here!” Ruby rushed up to the blonde and grabbed her by the elbow, pulling her off to the side of the room.

“Whoa, what’s up, Ruby?” Ruby looked nervously around the room.

“You know your parents found a way back to the Enchanted Forest yeah?” Emma nodded.  “Well...the thing is… Some of us don’t want to go back.”

“Really? The way Snow talks everyone wants to go back as soon as possible…” Another rumble suddenly shook the room. “Sadly, I don’t know if we’re going to have much of a choice...” David started calling everyone’s attention to the front of the room. “I’ll explain in a sec.” The duo went to join the small crowd in front of David and Snow.

“So as you all know, we’ve found a way back home!” Snow smiled out at the small crowd. A small cheer went out in the audience. Emma looked around at the faces in the room. They were all royalty and people she knew to be closest to Snow. What were her parents up to? “We’ve managed to get our hands on a magic bean that’ll transport us back to the Enchanted Forest!” Again more cheers rang out.

“Just how did you get your hands on this bean?” Emma was surprised by Ruby stepping forward and asking the question.

“We made a deal with Rumplestiltskin.” A low murmur went through the crowd.

“At what price?!” Emma couldn’t believe Snow and David would deal with Gold.

“All he wanted was some of our hair…”

“Snow! That gives him the most powerful magic of all? Have you learned nothing?!” Emma was livid. “Why is the entire town not present to hear about all of this?”

“We only have the one bean. The portal won’t be open long enough to get everyone through before it closes. Everyone that’s here is a known White Kingdom loyalist or a leader of their own kingdom.” Emma heard Ruby gasp beside her. “Once we are home, I’ll have my best people work on getting everyone else back.” Another rumble shook the room.

Emma knew she had to say something about the town collapsing, she supposed now was a good of a time as any… “Snow… Mom.” She wanted to make sure this point sunk in… “The town might not be here by the time you get back.”

Snow smiled at Emma. “I know, Emma. Rumple told me everything.”

Emma couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You’re just willing to leave your people here? What good is a kingdom with no subjects?!”

Snow seemed to think about it for a moment. “I’m taking the ones that matter. Those left behind are mainly people who were loyal to Regina. Or those that have no skills that will be useful once we get back. You saw that there are still people in the Enchanted Forest. The kingdom will endure!”

Emma shook her head, how was this woman a beloved fairytale character? Emma suddenly understood everything Regina had ever told her about her parents being idiots. “You think those people will welcome you with open arms?”

“Of course, I am their Queen.” That was it, wasn’t it? Regina never wanted to be a queen, but Snow was born to be one.

“I suppose you’ll also be taking Gold and Belle with you?” Emma figured it must be part of the price…

“No, he said he had no need for the bean. I didn’t ask for details. Now if we’re all done with questions…”

“I’m not going with you, Snow.” Ruby stood up tall and proud before her best friend.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Ruby.”

“No, I like this land. I’m going to stay and help figure out how to save it.”

“Well, if she’s staying, so am I.” Granny appeared next to her Granddaughter. “Also, I think you’re being kind of an ass, Snow.”

Snow gasped at Granny’s words. David put a hand onto her shoulder and whispered into the young Queen’s ear. “So be it. Is there anyone else who would like to stay here to die amongst the commoners?” Snow looked around the room.

“Sorry, sister…” Snow’s eyes grew wide as Leroy moved over to stand behind Ruby. “I’m not feeling the mining life anymore.” Soon all the dwarfs joined their brother behind Ruby. Next Archie stepped up to join the rebel group.

“Well, you all have made your choice. Now leave this hall so we can plan in peace.” Snow looked down at the table, obviously rattled by what had just taken place.

As the rebel group made their exit, Emma turned to follow them out of the room.

“EMMA!” Emma turned and looked a red-faced Snow right in the eye.

“I’m choosing to stand with the commoners.”

 

* * *

 

After sending Ruby and the other rebels off with a promise to meet later, Emma paced nervously up and down main street.

She was at a loss for what to do next. She couldn’t go with her parents. The Enchanted Forest was out of the question. Her small time there was enough for her to know it was no place for Henry to grow up. Then there was the fact that Storybrooke was falling apart. It wouldn’t be safe for anyone soon… She and Henry leave town, but the left behind citizens of Storybrooke couldn’t. They would lose their memories if they crossed the town line, but at least they’d be alive? Ugh, it was so frustrating! She kicked at a rock on the sidewalk. When she looked up, she noticed Belle was loading boxes into a car in front of the pawn shop. That was curious…

“Whatcha doing?” Emma watched as Belle jumped at the blondes sudden appearance beside her.

“Emma! You frightened me!” The petite brunette smiled up at Emma. “I’m packing up the car! Rumple and I are finally going to explore the world together! Isn’t it exciting?” Belle clasped her hands together, and that’s when Emma noticed she was wearing a cuff on her wrist that matched the one she had seen on Gold.

“That is exciting. That’s a lovely cuff you have there. What’s that about?” Emma watched as Belle looked down at her wrist and once again smiled.

“It’s a gift from Rumple! It’s what will allow me to leave Storybrooke and not lose my memories!” Emma could kiss Belle for her honest, sweet soul. What the woman saw in the Dark One, Emma would never understand. “He has one as well, but his works a bit differently than mine…”

“Oh? Why’s that?” Emma could see Belle was suddenly nervous.

“I…”

“Belle. Go inside and pack some more things. We will be leaving shortly.” Belle smiled sadly at Emma, and the blonde could only smile sadly back in return.

“Hey, Rumple. What’s the 411!?” Emma glared at...what did Regina call him again? Oh yeah, the Imp...it was very fitting.

“Miss Swan. I’ve completed my deal with your family, so I’d prefer it if you’d leave mine alone.” He leaned on his cane and once again Emma could see the cuff on his wrist as his jacket rode up his arm. She looked closely at him...he looked...nervous?

“You don’t have your magic with that thing on, do you?” She watched as his pupils dilated. She had him. Emma’s head started spinning with possible reasons he’d dampen his magic. He gave one to Belle to wear. Why? They were leaving Storybrooke to go to a land without magic...he was a coward without magic. Bingo. “That gives you magic in the outside world, doesn’t it?”

Rumple sighed and tugged down his sleeve. “Yes, Miss Swan. I’d be a fool to venture out in this world without it. This world may be more advanced with technologies than the Enchanted Forest, but it’s more barbaric in many other ways, as you well know.”

“Why is it blocking your magic here?” Emma’s mind was still racing processing all the information she was learning.

“An unfortunate side effect.” He wasn’t lying to her, how odd.

“Can you make more?” Emma figured she knew the answer, but she just wanted to hear him say it out loud.

“No. I only had enough ingredients for the two.” Belle came back out of the shop with a box of books. “I’m sorry to cut this conversation off, Miss Swan, but we have some packing to finish.” He wrapped his arm around Belle when she joined his side. Emma smiled at the couple for the librarian’s sake. Then one more idea popped into her head.

“Where’s the road less traveled going to take you first?” Before Rumple could speak, Belle spoke out.

“Seattle, Washington!” She had a huge smile on her face. “With a few spots in between, of course.” Belle smiled up at Rumple, who smiled with gritted teeth down at the woman he loved.

“Seattle, huh? Well, have fun!” Emma waved at Belle and headed straight for the bug. Seattle that couldn’t just be a coincidence. Did she just learn where Regina was?

 

* * *

 

“Why would Rumplestilskin go after Mom?”

“I dunno, kid, but it’s the only lead we’ve got. As soon as Belle mentioned Seattle all my…” Emma scrunched her face up trying to think of how to explain what she was feeling.

“Your Spidey senses went off?” Henry smiled at her.

“Yeah, exactly!” She ruffled his hair. “Now go pack a bag, we’re going to fly out tomorrow. That’ll get us to Seattle before Gold.” She watched as Henry ran off to pack a bag. Taking out her phone she started searching flights to Seattle. Emma cringed when she saw the prices. Thank goodness she had the money Regina gave her, or she’d be screwed. Knowing the drive to Boston would take sometime she picked one of the later flights out. As she was getting her credit card out a huge crashing sound came from upstairs. “Kid?” She walked to the bottom of the stairs. “You alright, kid?!” Another large crash had her taking two steps at a time to get to Henry’s room. Slamming the door open she was greeted with the sight of blue smoke fading away… “Dammit, Snow!”

Rushing down the stairs, she struggled to find her keys, where the hell had she threw them when she came in? Her phone started ringing, looking down at the caller ID she answered. “I don’t have time right now, Ruby!”

“They have Henry!” Emma stopped in her tracks.

“Do you have eyes on them?” Emma clenched her free hand, and her fingers started to tingle strangely.

“Yes! They’re going to open the portal any second, Emma! You’ve got to get down here! I’m trying to stall them, but Snow has gone mad.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can, keep up the stalling!” Emma ended the call and started the search for her keys again. She was near panic at not being able to find them. Both of her hands were tingling now...this was so not the time for a panic attack, Swan! She started to think about how Ruby was there, and she wished she was there with her…. Then the entire world around her began to turn white. The next thing she knew, she was standing beside Ruby.

“Emma?!”  Ruby looked at the blonde sheriff with wide eyes. “You have magic?”

“Umm, it’s news to me too.” A wave of nausea washed over her. “Ugh, where’s Henry?”

“Over there.” Ruby pointed to a group at the end of the street. “Blue has a force field up, and this is as close as we can get.

Emma stepped forward and hit the force field hard.

“I just said…”

“Yeah, yeah, force field, got it.” She shook the stars out of her eyes and searched the crowd. “SNOW!” The petite Queen smirked over at her lost daughter. Emma’s skin crawled. “Give me back my son now!”

“He’s coming with us, Emma! This world is no place for our young Prince.” Emma looked over at Henry who was struggling in David’s arms.

“Dad! Don’t let her do this!” She hoped maybe David still had some humanity left in him.

“I’m sorry, Princess. This is for the best! Maybe one day you’ll see the light, and can rejoin your family!” He tightened his hold on Henry.

Emma watched in horror as Snow raised the magic bean high in the air. It appeared she was saying one of her long-winded speeches about hope, but Emma didn’t hear a word of it. She was seething. Her hands started to tingle again, but this time she lashed out with them and hit the force field with an intense beam of magic.

Ruby stood by with her mouth hanging open as she watched Emma hit the force field with the brightest most intense white magic she had ever seen. Looking back at the force field the young waitress started to see cracks forming. “You’re breaking it, Emma! Keep going!”

Down the street, Emma’s magic didn’t go unnoticed. As soon as the first cracks appeared Snow threw down the magic bean and opened the portal. Snow, David, and Henry were the first through. Soon all of the other White Kingdom elites started to follow. Emma cried out in frustration as the force field broke apart just a tiny bit more.

“I can’t get through that! I’m running out time!” She and Ruby looked over in horror as the portal began to shrink.

Suddenly, Ruby stood up tall and walked over to Emma and placed a hand onto her shoulder. “I’ll protect him, Emma.”

“What are you..?” Before Emma could ask Ruby what she meant, the waitress transformed herself into her wolf form and took off towards the force field at full speed. The wolf barely squeezed through the hole in the force field. Emma watched on in awe has Ruby leaped up and jumped through the portal right as it closed shut. The force field suddenly disappeared, and Emma collapsed to the ground exhausted, both physically and mentally.

“You okay, sister?” Leroy held out a hand for her. She grabbed ahold of it and let the dwarf drag her to her feet.

“No…”

“Don’t worry. My Granddaughter will protect Henry. Snow wouldn’t dare cross Ruby.” Granny’s faith in Ruby helped Emma feel somewhat better. “You better find the Queen fast though, she’s gonna be pissed.”

Emma dropped her head into her hands. Ugh, Regina was going to kill her.

 


	7. Chapter 7

Emma stepped off the plane in Seattle and took a deep calming breath. Her nerves were beyond frazzled from all the stress of the last few days. Ugh, not just the last few days, the last few months had been hell. Ever since Regina had left town… Sliding on her backpack, Emma headed out to find the Lyft pick-up area. On her way out she stopped and shook her head at a mural running along one of the walls at the airport. It was a painting of a magician making a guy disappear. A painting! How odd. It was a strange enough sight to see as an average person that didn’t know magic was real... It was an even stranger of a sight to see when you knew magic was real. Emma let her thoughts wander to Regina as she continued on her way out of the airport. The lack of magic in the regular world was probably the only thing keeping the former Evil Queen alive at the moment. When Regina found out Emma had lost Herny, it would probably be the only thing keeping the blonde alive as well.

Once settled into her Lyft, Emma texted the contact her buddy Charlie had given her. Emma didn’t know much about the person other than they went by the name Acid Burn. Charlie promised the person was on the up and up and would be able to help her track down Regina if she was in town. Emma had a strong feeling that Regina was here. There was a feeling in the air that told her the Mayor was close. She smiled and thought of Henry calling it her Spidey sense. God, she hoped Ruby was keeping the kid safe. She was going to strangle Snow when she saw the woman again. That was if Regina didn’t get to Snow first.

 

* * *

 

Regina smiled brightly as she greeted customers in her newly opened restaurant. Tonight was the official grand opening, but the restaurant had been open for just over three weeks. The early buzz around the neighborhood had been positive. There were even already a few morning and afternoon regulars.

“Roni!” Regina looked over at the sound of her pseudonym being called out. The blonde woman waving at her made her heart start to race. Her former real estate agent and current...friend? made her way over to the brunette. She hadn't seen the woman since they went on their date, and it had ended somewhat awkwardly. The evening of their date had gone okay overall... Some of the questions the woman had asked seemed rather odd, but Regina was still getting to know how this outside world worked so she had just let them slide. Most of the conversation they shared had been rather pleasant. Then at the end of the night, the woman kissed her goodnight and well, there was nothing there. Zero. Regina had felt no spark. It was actually somewhat disappointing.

“Wendy. It’s good to see you, dear.” They kissed cheeks.

“The place looks amazing! I’ve heard some glowing reviews already.” Regina could only smile her thanks. “You hired a couple of my good friends.” Regina watched as Wendy waved over to T, the woman Regina had hired as her restaurant manager. The woman’s husband was also the new head chef. They had both been recommended by her contractor...who had been recommended by Wendy. The contractor had given Regina the creeps a few times, but his work had been great... Regina thought back to how she had met Wendy in the first place. They had literally bumped into one another at a nearby coffee shop, Wendy had spilled her coffee onto her, and they had just started up a conversation from there... Regina shook her head. There was no reason to doubt any of these people. This was a new fresh start at life; it wasn't Storybrooke.

“Well, I’m lucky to have found you all.” There was an awkward moment of silence between them. “I should get back to work. It was lovely to see you again.”

“Maybe we can grab a drink soon?” Regina tried to keep her face neutral on the matter, but Wendy saw right through it. “Just as friends, Roni.” Regina smiled and nodded at the blonde woman.

“I’d like that. Maybe once things have settled here a bit?” Another shared smile and Regina made a quick getaway. She walked back to the kitchen to check in on how they were handling the evening rush.

“Hey, boss.” Regina took in her lead chef as he smiled over at her. He had a crooked smile that at times seemed oddly familiar, but she could never place why.

“How are things going in here, Chef?”

“Great! We’ve gotten some amazing feedback. Your lasagna is a big hit!” That made her smile. She’d worked rather closely with Chef to get the menu set up just right.

“I’m happy to hear it. Keep up the amazing work everyone!” She smiled at the staff around the kitchen and made her way out to the bar. The night was winding down, so she decided to pour herself a drink. Looking out over the crowd she felt a sense of pride knowing she had managed to pull this all together on her own. No one was controlling her. No magic was needed. She had made this happen.

 

* * *

 

Emma paced back and forth behind Acid Burn as they tapped away on their keyboard. The young hacker was nothing like Emma was expecting, not that she had any idea what to expect, but this wasn’t it. First of all, they were young. Like really young. Emma guessed maybe in their early twenties, if not late teens… Emma was impressed with their style, however. Anyone who wore a leather vest was cool in Emma’s book. Acid Burn was androgynous and fabulous. That was how they had introduced themselves, and Emma had loved it, and them, right away.

“Would you sit down! You’re gonna walk a rut into my floor!”

“Sorry. It’s just... I’ve been here for two weeks now, and I’m getting scared I’m not going to find her...” Emma was also pretty sure Gold would be in town soon if he weren’t already.

“We saw your lady leaving the airport on the security cam footage, you know she’s here. I have facial recognition running on all the CTV cams; we’ll find her.” Acid had talked Emma down a few times now when the blonde had begun to panic. Emma was just so freaked out that everything was falling apart. She was worried about Henry. She was worried about Storybrooke. She was worried about letting Regina down… She knew she already had let the brunette down by losing Henry. Shaking her head to clear the never-ending doubt she had fogging her brain, Emma grabbed the days newspaper.

“HOLY SHIT!” Acid Burn jumped out of their chair and hit the ground. Emma started laughing her ass off. “I’m so sorry! It’s just we’ve been searching and searching...and that fucking bitch.” Emma handed the food and entertainment section over to Acid Burn. “That sweet damn beautiful bitch is right there smiling at me.”

“Veronica Miller, owner of the newest Seattle hotspot, Roni’s.” Acid Burn read the picture caption out loud. “Well, it looks like you found your lady. Kinda odd she goes to such lengths to go into hiding and yet will appear in a newspaper article.” An obviously frustrated Acid Burn tossed the paper back at Emma.

“Hey, you’ve been a big help.” They only nodded at Emma and went back to their computer. Emma looked down at the photo of Regina. She looked so happy. The brunette was smiling down at a customer seated at a table. Her hair was shorter, and it was curly. Emma had no idea Regina’s hair had any sort of natural curl to it. She was beautiful. It was obvious Regina had no idea the photographer had taken the picture... “She didn’t know.”

Acid looked up. “What?”

“She didn’t know they were taking a picture of her. Look at how casual she is... I’m guessing she didn’t know they were taking it.”

“Do you think she’ll run?”

Emma looked down at the picture again. She scanned the article. It was full of quotes from “Roni’ about how proud of the restaurant she was… “No. It sounds like she’s put a lot of work into where she is, but she’s probably pissed, and a bit scared right now.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to go get her. She’s my only hope…” Emma stopped herself mid-sentence. Acid didn’t know any details and didn’t need to.

“I get it, Princess Leia, say no more....” Emma rolled her eyes. “Here’s the address. It’s listed as her home address as well. So I’m guessing it's also her residence. Good luck!” Emma smiled as she took the address from Acid’s outstretched hand.

“Thank you.” Emma grabbed her bag and rushed out the door.

 

* * *

 

Regina crumpled up the newspaper and tossed it across the room. “Those idiots!” She watched as Miss Swan ran after the tossed aside paper and tackled it. She couldn’t help but smile as she watched the small cat attack the offending item by biting and kicking at it. When she agreed to have, the newspaper do the write up about the restaurant they had assured her it would only be a small article with maybe a small picture of the front of the building. She hadn’t even seen the reporter snap the picture. What were the odds she could be found because of this? Was anyone even looking for her? She scoffed at herself...they probably weren’t even looking. Hell, she didn’t even know if they were still in Storybrooke. Knowing the two idiots, they probably talked Emma into going back to the Enchanted Forrest...

A knock on her door made her jump. She rarely had people come to her door… She had taken the night off from the restaurant to calm her nerves over the newspaper article. It was probably someone from downstairs wanting to ask a question. She took a deep breath to calm her frazzled nerves and walked over to the door. She opened it slowly…

“What the hell are YOU doing here?!”

 

* * *

 

Emma ran up to the front door of Roni’s and was surprised to find the restaurant closed. It was relatively early on a Wednesday evening. She watched as other confused people walked up to the door and peered inside. Had Regina run? Was she that afraid to be found? Emma watched as one young woman walked up to the door and tried to get in...she was wearing clothes that made Emma believe she might work there.

“Hey.” The young woman jumped at the sound of Emma’s voice. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. Do you work here?”

The young woman looked Emma up and down. She must not have seen anything too off-putting because she visibly relaxed. “Yeah… I’m not sure what’s going on. None of my bosses are answering their phones.”

“I’m an old friend of Roni’s, and she asked me to stop by...do you happen to know where the entrance to her place is? I know she lives here as well…” Emma smiled her best smile at the young woman.

“Oh yeah, it’s just around back in the alley! If you find her can you have her call me? I really can’t lose this job…” Emma nodded in understanding, serving jobs were rarely your first choice, but they did pay the bills.

“I will. I’m sure something unexpected just came up.” The young woman took her leave, and Emma sprinted to the back alley. The door that led upstairs was hanging wide open. Emma wished she had a gun. She caught sight of something shiny on the steps, blood. The blonde took the steps two at a time and found the door to Regina’s apartment wide open as well. Stepping inside Emma could see a struggle had taken place. Furniture was overturned, there was broken glass everywhere. She could see splatters of blood throughout the area…

“Regina!!” The apartment wasn’t very large. A quick look around the place let her know there wasn’t anyone here. A rustling sound in the kitchen caught her attention. It was coming from inside one of the cupboards. Emma slowly opened it and was pounced on by a hissing cat. “Whoa! Calm down furball!” She wrapped her arms around the struggling cat, and it slowly relaxed. “There ya go little one.” She rubbed behind its ears, and it started to purr.

“Miss Swan.” Emma jumped at the sudden appearance of a woman at the apartment's door.

“Yeah? Who the fuck are you?” The woman looked at Emma with a confused look.

“That’s the name of the cat.” Emma looked down at the cat in her arms. Regina named her cat after me?

“Where is she?!”

“They took her.” Emma couldn’t read the woman. She seemed like she was in shock.

“Who did?!” Emma didn’t have time for riddles right now.

“They call themselves the Antimagicae. They told me they wouldn't hurt her…They told me they just wanted to get her to trust them, so she’d help them destroy magic. Magic ruins everything. I’m… I’m so sorry….”

Emma took two giant steps towards the woman. “Where is she?! Tell me so I can get to her before something awful happens!” Emma just hoped something awful hadn’t already happened.

“They have a warehouse down in SODO…” The woman reached into her purse and pulled out a pen and paper. Emma watched as the woman scribbled down an address with shaky hands.

“Please, tell her I’m sorry…”

“And just who the hell are you?!” Emma looked at the woman before her. Her long blonde hair cascaded down over her shoulders. She was pretty. There was no denying that.

“Wendy. Wendy Darling…” The woman turned quickly and fled the room before Emma could ask any more questions.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Emma and Regina will finally reunite in the next chapter, I promise!! :)
> 
> \--a quick soapbox moment--  
> I want to take a moment to thank readers who leave kudos and positive comments. Not just on my fics, but on others, as well. You feed the authors want and desire to continue to write more than you'll probably ever know... I understand that as readers we don't always agree with everything an author may do in a story. (Ha, that's why we write fanfics in the first place!) There is absolutely nothing wrong with leaving some sort of criticism in a comment, but there are right ways and wrong ways to do it. Please double think before you say anything too harsh. Authors are out here sharing their heart out with you, please respect them for taking the time to do so...negativity will only lead to fewer SQ stories for us to enjoy. Also, to my lovely authors... I know the negative words that have been being tossed out at many of you lately, sting. Please know you are loved and appreciated!  
> \--end of soapbox moment--
> 
> BTW- the mural mentioned at the beginning of the story is real. It creeps me out every time I'm at Sea-Tac. lol


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this out kind of quick. Sorry for any crazy errors!
> 
> Enjoy!!

Emma jumped out of her Lyft when it neared the warehouse. She was halfway to the front entrance before the car even stopped moving. Racing up to the front door she wasn’t surprised to find it locked. From the looks of the building, it had must have been abandoned for quite some time. Emma once again wished she had a gun. She probably could have gotten one through Acid if she had thought to ask. She snuck slowly down a side alley looking for another entrance into the building. The blonde spotted a hanging ladder from a fire escape and knew that was probably going to be her best bet to get inside. After a few failed attempts at trying to jump up and grab it, Emma’s frustration was getting to her. After a few more quick looks for another way in with no luck, she ran down to the end of the alley. She shook her arms in an attempt to calm herself and loosen up her muscles. With a determined look and one last deep breath, she took off running as fast as she could down the alleyway. As she approached the ladder, she jumped as high as she could and stretched her arms out above her head. Somehow she just managed to grab onto the bottom rung of the ladder with her outstretched fingers.

With some grunts and a few curse words, Emma managed to pull herself up onto the shaky ladder. She slipped through a broken window on the second level and managed to slice her hand open as she did. With a few more curse words she ripped off the bottom of her t-shirt to wrap up her bloody hand. The warehouse was dark and massive. She just hoped that Wendy hadn’t led her astray. Emma hadn’t pinged that the woman was lying. As her eyes adjusted to the room, she could see some light coming from a closed door on the main level of the building. Slowly the sheriff made her way towards it. Along the way, she picked up a pretty hefty pipe for protection. As she neared the door, she could hear muffled voices on the other side. She couldn’t hear what was being said and had no idea if Regina was even in the room…

“You idiots need to let me go this instant!” Emma almost laughed out loud at hearing Regina yell out at her captures. Happy to have confirmation that Regina was, in fact, in the room, Emma started to formulate a plan. She picked up a chunk of metal and threw it as hard as she could at a window on the other side of the main level. She hid around the corner as the door flew open and a young black woman ran out.

“What was it?” A male voice called out from the room. Emma now knew there were at least two of them to deal with...

“Looks like a window got busted out. Probably some kids or something. I’ll be right back!” Emma watched as the woman took off to check out the other side of the warehouse.

It was now or never. Emma hoped there wasn’t another silent member of the party as she made her next move. Gripping onto the pipe in her hand she slowly pushed back the now open door slowly. Taking a chance, she looked around the side of the door and thanked whatever gods there might be that the man’s back was to her. Regina, however, was looking right at her. The brunette's captors had placed a gag in her mouth after her last outburst, but her eyes grew large as she spotted Emma. Regina started to struggle, and Emma held her finger up to her mouth to let her know to be quiet. Carefully Emma stepped up behind the man, just as she lifted her arm to strike him with the pipe, he caught sight of her reflection in the window in front of him. He turned on her suddenly and lifted his arm to block her blow. The pipe flew out of her hand and landed on the floor with a few loud clanks. Emma managed to elbow the guy in the face before he recovered from the hit to his arm. Blood spurted out, and he cried out in pain. As he covered his face with his hands, Emma grabbed the pipe from the floor and hit him over the head, knocking him out cold. The guy obviously wasn’t much of a fighter… Knowing that the loud sounds probably rang out in the warehouse, Emma went to work trying to untie Regina hands from behind her back.

Regina was struggling and started making impatient grunting sounds. “I’ll ungag you in a second! Let me get you unti…” Before Emma could finish the sentence, a gunshot rang out. She looked up to see the young black woman pointing a gun at her. She took a quick look down at Regina to make sure she was okay and outraged brown eyes were glaring at her.

“That was just a warning shot. Get your hands in the air, now!” Emma did as she was told. “Now who do we have here? I was under the impression that the dear Queen here didn’t have any friends out in the real world…”

“I’m just a concerned citizen.” Emma knew she had to stall this woman as long as she could, so she could work out a plan...somehow.

“Well isn’t that lovely… And what is your name, concerned citizen?” Emma didn’t see any reason to lie…

“Emma Swan,” Regina grunted out something and Emma thought she saw the older woman roll her eyes.

“Swan?” The woman looked over at Regina and laughed. “You named your cat after this woman? How precious.” The woman motioned for Emma to take a seat in an empty chair near Regina. “Hands behind your back!” Emma knew the woman would have to put the gun down to tie her hands...if she could just get the timing it right…

Before she even got a chance to make a move Regina burst out of her chair and slammed into the woman sending the gun flying across the room. Emma jumped on the floor and grabbed the gun and spun around and took aim at the woman...who was now unconscious laying on the ground… She looked over at Regina who was untying her mouth gag. She noticed the knuckles on her right hand were visibly bruised.  Emma was kinda sad she missed seeing the punch.

“Nice work! Who the hell are these idiots?” Emma put the gun down and walked over to help Regina get rid of the last bit of rope around her hands.

“It’s a long story…” She looked down at her two assailants with a sad look. Then she turned on Emma with harsh eyes. “What the hell are you doing here, Miss Swan?!”

Regina’s tone caught Emma off guard. “Saving your ass?!” The man on the floor started to stir, and Emma kicked him unconscious again. “We can catch up in a sec; let’s get these two tied up first.”

They worked together in an eerie silence. Once the captors were both tied up and gagged the two women turned and faced each other.

“Okay...so who are they?” Emma questioned Regina first. She wanted to get answers from the Queen before she told her about Henry…

“Their names are Greg and Tamara. They were working for me at my restaurant… I have a history with Greg I wasn’t aware of...it really is a long story…” Regina suddenly looked so small. 

“What are you doing here, Emma?” Emma almost gasped at Regina’s use of her first name…

“It’s a long story, as well…” She looked over at Regina with tears suddenly forming in her eyes. She watched as panic washed over Regina’s face.

“Henry?!” Emma grabbed Regina’s upper arms as she saw the extreme panic setting in.

“He’s okay!” Emma kicked herself for not being better at delivering this news. “Snow and David took him...”

“Took him? Where?” Emma felt Regina’s body go rigid and watched her eyes grow cold.

“The Enchanted Forest.” Regina shrugged Emma’s hands off of her and began to pace the room like a wild cat.

“One job, Miss Swan! You had one job!” Emma knew if there had been magic in this world she’d have probably been burnt to a crisp by now…

“I know! And you can yell at me all you want later, I promise!” Emma walked up to the pacing brunette and again grabbed her upper arms. “Right now we need to clean up this mess so that we can get back to Storybrooke.”

Regina seemed to calm a bit as she looked back over to where Tamara and Greg were tied up. “There’s probably two more of them. We should probably get out of here.” Regina headed for the door.

Emma nodded her understanding and grabbed the gun and tucked into the back of her pants. “If one of them is named Wendy, I don’t think you need to worry about her.” Emma watched as Regina stopped dead in her tracks and turned to face her.

“Why not?” Emma couldn’t read how Regina was feeling…

“She was the one that told me where to find you...she, umm... actually told me to tell you she was sorry?” Emma watched as a myriad of emotions played out on Regina’s face. The older woman only nodded and turned to continue her journey out of the warehouse.

 

* * *

 

They returned to Regina’s apartment. Regina let Emma check to make sure it was empty. The ride back from the warehouse had been a silent one. It had surprised the brunette that Emma didn’t blabber the entire car ride. Regina was still processing everything that had taken place over the past few hours… She just wanted to get home and cuddle...

“Miss Swan?!” Emma turned to look at Regina as she called out the name.

“What?!” Regina looked over at Emma and blushed. “Oh, you’re looking for the cat, huh? She’s safe. I put her in the bathroom before I left.” Emma gave Regina a shy smile.

Regina didn’t say anything in return. She just rushed off to the bathroom to check on her cat. Regina knew it must be an odd sight for the savior to see; the former Evil Queen, cuddling a small orange tabby cat. The brunette nuzzled Miss Swan with her nose and whispered to her affectionately.

“Why Miss Swan?” Regina knew Emma couldn’t help herself from asking. “Did you miss me that much?” Regina watched as the sheriff’s cheeks turned a slight shade of pink.

Regina rolled her eyes. “Hardly. She was just very annoying and rude when we first met; that is all.” Regina hoped that’d be the end of the discussion, but this was Emma…

“But now you like her?” Emma’s face lit up with a look of hope. Regina could only shake her head at the idiot.

“Miss…” Ugh, this was awkward… “Sheriff, we have a more important thing to discuss. Mainly on how you managed to lose my son in less than six months of care?” Regina tried to keep a level tone, but her anger was right at the boiling point. Honestly the cat, Miss Swan was the only thing keeping her from screaming at the blonde.

“Snow and David had Blue take him!” Ugh, of course, the shady blue gnat was part of this… “She poofed in and grabbed him before I ever knew she was there! I managed to poof myself down to where the portal was, but they had a force field up…”

“You what?!” Regina must have misheard…

“Oh.” Again, Emma’s face flushed. “Apparently, I have magic?” Regina found herself staring at Emma and had to shake her head to clear her thoughts.

“Of course you do…” Regina hugged Miss Swan tighter to her chest. She felt the small cat wiggle not liking the extra pressure. “Sorry, dear.”

“It’s okay!” Regina looked up at a smug looking Emma and rolled her eyes. “But seriously, Regina. What are going to do?”

“We get back to Storybrooke as soon as we can.” Regina stood up and headed to her room to pack. She stopped when she felt Emma’s hand on her elbow. She turned to look at concerned green eyes.

“You left Storybrook for a reason, didn’t you?”

“Henry is my only concern!” Regina took a step back to put some distance between them.

“Regina, you dying, isn’t going to help anyone.” Emma was so damn calm. It made Regina furious.

“I can’t do nothing, Emma!” Emma nodded her understanding. Regina turned back into the room and put Miss Swan onto the bed. The cat settled down quickly and started to clean herself, not caring about all the drama happening around her.

“There’s a couple of other things I need to tell you, Regina...” Regina sighed and sat down on the side of the bed. She looked over at Emma who was standing in the doorway looking at the ground. The blonde woman shifted her weight back and forth on each foot nervously.

“What?!” Regina was exhausted and scared.  So many things being out of her control, and she hated that feeling.

Emma came into the room and sat beside Regina on the bed. “When you left Storybrooke...it started to fall apart, like, literally.” Regina didn’t understand, and Emma saw the look of confusion on her face. “Apparently, according to Gold, without the caster of the curse present, Strorybrooke will cease to exist.”

“I thought you broke the curse?” Regina had a headache.

“Yeah… I didn’t get it either. You know how cryptic Gold is with this stuff…” Just another issue they’d deal with when they got there… “Speaking of Gold…” Regina sighed audibly this time.

“Spit it out, Emma.”

“I think he’s probably here in Seattle...”

“What?!” Why would Rumple come here…

“He and Belle headed out of town, and Belle let it slip that this was their destination. It’s why I came here looking for you. I just don’t know why he would come after you?” Emma looked at Regina expectantly.

“Don’t look at me! I have no idea why he’d come here...”

“I can answer that!” They both jumped off the bed at the sudden sound of a familiar voice. “Hello, dearies.”

  



End file.
